Embroiled San Francisco DMV worker quits

The San Francisco Department of Motor Vehicles worker who was being investigated for mailing a letter to a transgender customer claiming she will go to hell has resigned from his job.

Thomas Demartini handed over a typed resignation letter late Wednesday night. However, DMV officials would not say whether the letter referenced the October incident.

“It was short and to the point, and we accepted it,” said Michael Marando, a spokesman for the DMV.

Demartini’s resignation came two months after the DMV put him on paid administrative leave while officials investigated the claim that he mailed a letter to Amber Yust, a 23-year-old transgender woman who had come into the San Francisco office to change her gender from male to female on her driver’s license.

Yust claimed Demartini was the clerk who processed her application and later sent a letter to her home saying her sex change was “a very evil decision.”

Yust’s attorneys did not return calls seeking comment Thursday. But Marando said Yust has since filed a claim against the DMV, which handles more than 30 million customer transactions annually.

The abrupt resignation will not put a stop to the DMV’s internal investigation, which is “nearing completion,” Marando said. While the investigation could have resulted in demoting, terminating or reassigning Demartini, there are still other avenues to pursue, he said.

Marando pointed out that Demartini breached a DMV employee confidentiality agreement when he used Yust’s personal information to contact her at her home.